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Experts say it is extremely likely the Hendra dog was infected by sick horses it had contact with on a Mount Alford property, south-west of Brisbane.

Professor Jeggo said there had been little research on the transmission of Hendra directly from bats to dogs, but that was considered very unlikely in this case.

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He said there was no doubt much more research was needed on Hendra and its transmission patterns, but stressed it remained a very rare disease.

"We need to do some work in dogs to determine what risks are from dogs - how infectious this disease is in dogs, can dogs shed the virus, what to expect when they get clinically sick."

When the Hendra virus was first isolated in Australia in 1994, researchers carried out a range of experiments to determine which animals it could infect, Professor Jeggo said.

Studies showed that dogs, cats and other lab animals including guinea pigs, rabbits and mice could be infected.

He said cats were shown to be highly susceptible to the virus, and also shed it - that is, the virus was in their bodily fluids which meant it could be passed on.

However, two dogs used in lab tests in 1995 showed no clinical signs of illness, and did not shed the virus, despite being infected with it.

"We understood it was possible dogs could be infected but we had no evidence then that dogs would shed the virus, or represent a significant risk to humans or other species," Professor Jeggo told ABC radio today.

"We do know that this particular dog [at Mount Alford] was never clinically sick that we're aware of. We don't know that it didn't shed the virus, but there's no evidence of that."

He said authorities had routinely tested dogs and cats on properties where Hendra had surfaced recently but the Mount Alford dog was the only positive result.

Other species such as possums and foxes were not being routinely tested.

Professor Jeggo said that while it was possible to "postulate" that such species could be carriers, close contact with a sick animal was needed for infection to occur.

He downplayed concerns that wild dogs in the Mount Alford area might have been infected.

"I think the likelihood there's wild dogs being in contact with sick horses is extremely unlikely."

He said it would be prudent to avoid drinking from backyard water tanks that might be infected with bat droppings.